University of Newfoundland, Canada

Collaborating for community regeneration: Facilitating partnerships in, through, and for place

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Abstract

Cross-sector partnerships (CSP) are increasingly recognized as essential for addressing our world’s mounting sustainability challenges. However, place is often considered merely as a contextual backdrop for these partnerships in CSP research. In this study, we focus on the ways in which place, including the natural, built, and cultural dimensions of geographic locations, is actively leveraged to facilitate cross-sector collaboration. Employing a qualitative and engaged research approach, we helped organize and studied two workshops held in small communities on the east coast of Canada whose goal was to build a cross-sector network of community leaders focused on revitalizing communities suffering from the collapse of their primary industry, the cod fishery. We show how the staging of place fostered deeper connections among participants by reducing barriers to participation, intensifying contact with others, and enabling participants to share local knowledge. In turn, connecting through place prompted participants to recognize a shared purpose and sense of belonging, two key elements for building cross-sector collaboration.

Biography

Jennifer Brenton is a PhD student in Management at Memorial University of Newfoundland. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Memorial University with a concentration in small business and entrepreneurship. Her research interests include social entrepreneurship and cross-sector work. She is interested in the role of place in shaping social enterprises and cross-sector partnerships and how place-based organizations can drive community revitalization and development. In addition to her research, Jennifer has worked as a consultant on topics of social enterprise governance, business plan development, and marketing.